Hong Kong Young Writers Anthologies Fiction 2020complete | Page 628

Baccarat
St Margaret's Co-Educational English Secondary and Primary School, Tsang, Natalie - 16
The door slammed against the wall, but Calum was too caught up in the roaring in his ears to register the
resounding bang. The children flinched, but didn’t look up from their laps. Untouched dishes laid on a
desolate dining table, around which the family was seated. ‘Cal, honey, the food’s getting cold. Let’s eat,
yeah?’ Her tone wavered towards the end, but she hid it with a cough.
Looking slightly less murderous, the man reappeared after several moments. He’d discarded his suit and
tie, which seemed to take most of the edge off his movements. Collapsing into the chair saved for him, he
rubbed his face in an attempt to clear the haziness from his mind. ‘This job will be the death of me,’ he
exhaled wearily.
The woman kept silent as she loaded his plate with long-cold chicken, after which she sat back and
motioned for the children to help themselves. By then, they’d been hungrily eyeing the food for quite a
while, and practically leapt up in their chairs at the cue.
As Calum picked up his knife, Eden shifted nervously. She cleared her throat awkwardly in light of the
uneasy atmosphere weighing the family down, saying tentatively, ‘Alfie, why don’t you tell Papa about the
results of your quiz?’
‘Oh? What good news do you have for me?’ The man raised an expectant eyebrow.
Alfie sat up straighter in his chair, yet still did not meet his fathers’ eyes. ‘I… Mrs. Dean gave us back our
English and Mathematics quizzes today. I got full marks for both of them.’
Eden held her breath as her husband chewed his food thoughtfully. ‘That’s great,’ he finally said, smiling
slightly, ‘keep it up.’ Momentarily stunned, Alfie blinked, then broke into a huge grin when the praise
finally registered.
Relief washed over the woman. Today’s a good day, she thought, I needn’t worry about an… an episode
like last time. With that thought, the tension in her shoulders eased for the first time since her husband’s
return.
A brief quiet descended as the family focused on the food, but Eden’s mind raced to fill it. Ask him about
work? It didn’t take her long to dismiss the idea, though, because work was off-limits. It was a subject best
left sitting behind layers of black and yellow caution tape, only to be broached should she have a death wish.
About the children, then, she decided. ‘Ebony was quite bummed that you couldn’t make her play. She
kept on asking where you were.’
Ebony peeked at her father from behind her bowl, and nodded vigorously when their eyes met. ‘I asked
Mama to record it, so you can watch it later!’ She was vibrating in her seat in excitement, a sight so
endearing that Cal couldn’t help but reach over and ruffle her hair.
‘I’ll watch it, baby. When I have time.’ He paused, and that statement seemed to remind him of
something unpleasant, because his originally soft gaze was replaced by a distasteful scowl. It was as if his
entire demeanour changed in the blink of an eye, reverting back to the cold, austere man in the pressed suit
and straight slacks he’d been when he first entered the apartment.
Catching sight of her daughter’s crestfallen expression, the woman sighed faintly. Cal’s good moods were
always like this - few, far-between. ‘Is anything the matter?’ She pressed carefully.
The man rubbed his temples as if fighting off an oncoming migraine, and to anyone of a fainter heart,
especially those who had witnessed his temper first-hand, that would’ve been an obvious signal to mind
their own business and shut up. However, she wasn’t spineless. Besides, considering his expression was more